The NY Mets have advanced to the World Series for the first time in over a decade with a 4-0 NLCS sweep of the Chicago Cubs. The team got stellar pitching, timely hitting and strong play from Daniel Murphy, who won series MVP by putting up historic numbers for New York.
Here are 5 things to know about the Mets heading into the World Series.
The pitching rotation is top notch
The Mets came into the playoffs with the deepest pitching rotation of any team and they showed why in the Cubs series. The team swept behind some great pitching from Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom and Noh Syndergaard, while Steven Matz took care of business in Game 4. No other team in the playoff field had a rotation with that much depth and neither the Blue Jays nor Royals can match that talent. The Mets held the Cubs to a .158 batting average in the first three games of the series after the Cubs mashed home runs and put up solid numbers against the Cardinals.
Daniel Murphy is hotter than anyone right now
Murphy hit a home run on Wednesday night and that gave him six straight games with a homer, something no other baseball player has ever done. Murphy said to the media after winning the MVP for the series that his performance is more about the team and that he has been seeing the ball well through the postseason. Murphy stats overall have been great, as he is hitting .421 with seven home runs and 11 RBI in nine games. ESPN Stats reports that Murphy is the only player ever to homer in all the games played in a seven game League Championship Series. Now the question is whether a short layoff until the World Series starts will cool him off.
Yoenis Cespedes is not seriously injured
Yoenis Cespedes had to leave Game 4 a little early with a shoulder injury, but the outfielder is not dealing with a serious issue heading into the World Series. The team has some time off anyway for Cespedes to heal up and taking Cespedes out of the game was done out of caution over anything else. Cespedes has been fantastic for the Mets this season, hitting .287 with 17 home runs and 44 RBI in 57 regular season games with the team. Cespedes has two home runs and seven RBI in the postseason.
The Mets haven't been to the World Series in a long time
The Mets are heading back to the World Series for the first time since losing to the Yankees in the Subway Series. That was a big matchup in the city of New York and now with the Mets into the championship again, some Yankee fans may even want to root for their cross town counterparts. Some Mets fans may want those Yankees fans to stay away, but they could get swept up in some World Series fever in NYC.
The Mets are the road team no matter what happens with the Royals and Blue Jays
The team had to go on the road in the NLDS against the Dodgers and they were able to close out that series in Game 5, so playing on the road may not be a major issue for the Mets. The team is built to play at Citi Field, but the team won two games at Wrigley and also made noise while playing at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Both Kauffman Stadium and the Rogers Centre can get very loud, but the Mets have shown that they are not fazed by wild road crowds and that could play out in the World Series.
Check here for more on the Mets and the World Series schedule.